Official site of Inspirational Author Carrie Turansky

Tag Archives: Vacation

We just returned from a 12-day trip to Rome and Tuscany, and I wanted to bring back some stories and share the adventure with you!

Carrie and Scott at the Duomo in Florence

We took an overnight flight from New Jersey to Italy and spent the first four days in Rome. Highlights were visiting the Vatican, Saint Peter’s Cathedral, and the Sistine Chapel with the beautiful ceiling painted by Michael Angelo. We also toured the Roman colosseum and Forum with ruins from ancient Rome. One of my favorite experiences was walking through the open markets and past several beautiful fountains. We stopped to see the Spanish Steps where Princess Ann (Audrey Hepburn) ate gelato with Joe Bradley (Gregory Peck) in Roman Holiday. That was fun!

I did pretty well sticking to my gluten-free, dairy-free food plan (for health reasons) but I did enjoy one cup of vanilla-cherry gelato. Delicious!

The second part of our trip we drove up to Tuscany and stayed at a rustic rented villa about twenty minutes south of Siena. We were way out in the country surrounded by olive groves, farms, and vineyards, and it was very peaceful and beautiful spot!

The Duomo (Cathedral) in Siena

We visited Florence, Siena, and a few of the lovely small hilltop towns with markets, sidewalk cafes, narrow streets, and history that goes way back to Roman times with lots of artwork and buildings from the Renaissance. So beautiful and inspiring!

We enjoyed the family of cats at the villa, the mom and dad and four kittens. The kittens played out in the courtyard every day and were so cute.

Overall, it was a wonderful trip, and we were very grateful for the chance to get away, enjoy an adventure, and be refreshed.

I turned in my latest novel near the end of April, Across the Blue, and I’m dreaming of my next story . . . Maybe it should be set in a rustic villa in Italy!

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This Week’s Focus

It's launch week for Across the Blue my new English historical novel. Click over to the Extra page for info about release events.

What I'm Reading ::

The Lacemaker by Laura Frantz, and I'm listening to the audio version of The Gurnsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Maryann Schafer and Annie Barrows .

In His Word ::

I'm reading through the One-Year Chronological Bible and we're using Anxious For Nothing by Max Lucado in our Women's Bible study. We're working our way through the Book 2 Corinthians on Sunday mornings at Calvary Chapel Living Hope.